1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to building siding attachment clips, and more particularly, to attachment clips able to withstand the temperature extremes of weather conditions while permitting the building siding attached by the clips to freely expand and contract and not affect the attachment.
2. Background Art
Attachment of building siding to outer or external walls is required to meet several criteria, among which is the ability to maintain the integrity of the siding attachment, even when experiencing extremes in weather conditions, such as temperature or high winds. Siding for buildings may comprise any of a number of materials, such as aluminum, wood, vinyl, etc., and the expansion and contraction of these materials may often affect the siding attachment or connection by repeated stresses on the attachment mechanism that retains the siding against the wall to which it is attached. Especially in temperate climates, where temperature may range from well below 0° F. to over 100° F., the repeated stress on the attachment mechanism may externally detach one or more attachment means so that it becomes possible for a strong wind to blow off one or more siding strips, thereby risking further damage and requiring repair or replacement of the siding.
Most external walls require attachment mechanisms, e.g., screws, nails, etc., which may be easily inserted, for example, into walls having a wood panel or similar underlayment. However, it has been especially difficult to attach siding to walls made of concrete blocks, bricks, stucco, stone or similar materials, hereinafter referred to as concrete walls. In order to ensure the integrity of the attachment mechanism to concrete walls, it has been general practice to provide a secondary structural framework comprising an easily attachable material, such as wood, to the underlying concrete wall, and then to attach the siding onto the secondary framework. One preferred form of this type of framework, referred to in the siding installation industry as firring, includes attaching or firring a plurality of wood strips, usually 1″×4″ in dimension, vertically to the concrete wall at regular intervals, to provide an attachment framework to which the siding is then horizontally attached in overlying layers. To fir all of the external walls of a building in order to provide the framework for siding attachment can become an overly expensive proposition, for example, costing approximately $4,000.00 for a typical residential building.
Although conventional clips, normally used for attaching siding to underlying surfaces made of wood are available, these mechanisms do not provide the integrity to the attachment when applied to a concrete wall. The conventional clips do not take into account the relative differences in expansion characteristics of the concrete wall, when compared to that of the siding, so that stresses develop as a result of the weather extremes described above. Moreover, the design of conventional attachment clips was not considered as suitable for use with concrete walls, and the shape and configuration of such clips cause the clips to come crack or otherwise deform when installing in concrete walls, as to contact the adjacent or overlying strip of siding, which contact adds significantly to the stresses which the attachment mechanism experiences. Especially in hot weather, such contact may even cause the siding itself to deform. What has been found necessary is an attachment clip that is designed specifically for attaching siding to concrete walls that significantly reduces or substantially eliminates stresses on the attachment mechanism, especially those generated by weather extremes.